Account for the Spread of Islam from Its Beginnings to Ad 600c

Over the 100 years that Islam expanded, the Arabs collected a wealth of science, philosophy and arts from lands they had conquered as they grew. By the tenth century, nearly all Greek texts were translated into Arabic as a result of the Translation Movement. They preserved a lot of Greek works that would have been lost otherwise. At the time they were thought of as the greatest scholars because of all of the knowledge they combined from different countries. For example, the Greeks liked geometry, and the Hindus liked algebra and arithmetic, so the Arabians developed a combination of both called trigonometry, used for astronomical purposes with the ratios called trigonometric functions. The Islamic people contributed to transmission of knowledge in Europe by all of the writing they had sought after to make their own. It gave them so much more information than other countries. As more expansion occurred, the Greek scientific writings moved westward through the Islamic world and reached Spain by the 9th century.

Document 5 states, “When Europeans learned that Muslims had preserved important medical texts, they wanted to translate the texts into Latin… Throughout this process, European medical schools gained access to vital reference sources...” Muslims preserved medical texts; this created a basis of a foundation of modern day medicine. The preservation of medicine allowed for other people to better it; resulting in advanced cures for different diseases. This advancement benefited others, European schools, in their development.

The prophet Muhammad sparked the rise of Islam on the Arabian Peninsula by preaching the word of Allah, and inspired the caliphs that came after him to expand the religion and lead it to a period of prosperity. Without the benefits that Islam brought and the power of the Muslim army Islamic Civilization might have secluded itself to one region like Judaism did and not spread so quickly across the region like it did. The appeals that Islamic culture and the teachings of Muhammad offered, as well as practical benefits of converting to Islam, brought many People of the Book and other non-Muslims into the religion. Muslims used military force and threats in the name of Allah to strike fear into all non believers and expand Muslim territory through

There were hundreds of religions in the sixth century. However, only one became the fastest growing religion in the world today. Islam was started by a man named Muhammad. Muhammad was an ordinary man with and extraordinary purpose. In 610 C.E., Muhammad went into a cave in Mecca to pray.

In Document C, a map of the Arabian Peninsula shows how Islam spread through military campaigns. The campaigns were successful because during the seventh and eighth centuries the empires surrounding the Arabian Peninsula, Persia and the Byzantine Empire, were weak after battling each other for almost a century. This allowed for the followers of Islam to conquer them, allowing for the religion to spread easily.Document D explains how military operations aided the spread of Islam. Under the Ummah Muslims are not allowed to attack other Muslims, leading to an increase in ghazu raids against non-Muslim communities around the Middle East. Persia and Byzantium were still weakened, causing effortless raids. In these raides the Muslims would spare those they were attacking who then converted to Islam. These raids were simple for the Muslims and produced copious amounts of followers for their

Islam is one of the major world religions that quickly proliferated across the world. The spread of Islam started when Prophet Muhammad began to address the public a new revelation that he received from God in 632 CE. It was later written in the Quran, which is the Islamic sacred text. The religion united everyone under one rule and appealed to all because there was no hierarchy. It particularly diffused during the Middle Ages, when Islam had a great desire in exploring new information, developing extensive trade and creating a powerful military system in the Middle East and North Africa, which helped the Islamic World dominate politically and religiously.

Though the religion started in Mecca, Islam spread far and wide. Under the rule of Muhammad, the Four Caliphs, and the Umayyad caliphs, lands from Spain and North Africa to the Middle East became Muslim territory. (Document C). The expanding of Muslim lands exposed more people to the religion. Previously they may not have heard of Islam until the areas in which they lived in came under Muslim control. Later on, a golden opportunity for the Muslims came from their neighboring kingdoms, "Persia and Byzantium had both been engaged for decades in a long . . . series of wars with one another. Both were exhausted. (Document D). With both kingdoms, Persia and Byzantium, weakened, Muslims had a quick and effortless victory and were able to double the size of their kingdom. Altogether, the expansion of Muslim territory resulted in the spread of Islam due to more people being exposed to the Islamic

When Muhammad died, Muslims faced the challenge of creating institutions to preserve the community. This is the Middle period of Islam. Muslims believe that the revelation was completed with the work of Muhammad, who is described as the seal of the prophets. The leaders after Muhammad were described only as caliphs, or successors to the Prophet, and not as prophets themselves. The first four caliphs were companions of the Prophet and their period of rule (632-661) is described by the majority of Muslims as the age of the Rightly Guided Caliphate. This was an era of expansion during which Muslims conquered the Sasanid (Persian) Empire and took control of the North African and Syrian territories of the Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Empire. The Muslim community was transformed from a small city-state controlling much of the Arabian Peninsula into a major world empire, in this case the Umayyad empire, extending from northwest Africa to central Asia. The emphasis

    Around the years of 632-750 C.E., Islamic followers created an empire that reached across North Africa into Europe and dominated the Middle East. Due to several aspects leading up to expansion such as war, geography, and establishing an organized impressionable government, the Islamic empire grew rapidly.

In the 7th and 8th centuries, Islam spread from its beginnings in Arabia to cover the entire Middle East and parts of Africa, Asia, and Europe. As (Document 8) shows, by the year 750, Islam stretched from Eastern Persia in the Middle East, all the way to the westernmost edges of Spain and North Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. Islam expanded so rapidly because of its techniques on conquering unstable areas and converting people to Islam, preventing setbacks and obstructions. Islam had three main reasons for its eminent prosperity. The way that Muslims treated the conquered people allowed for peace throughout the empire. Tolerance, combined with the military power, a disciplined army, and an overall appealing religion of Islam, provided the template that allowed the empire to expand to encompass an enormous amount of area.

During the time around 610 C.E when Muhammad lived in the Arabian Peninsula, Islam began spreading quickly for many different reasons. Historians believed that Islam spread for the reasons of trade, military conquest, and the treaty. People disagreed with this event because they had different perspectives on what were the main events for Islam spreading so quickly. The most important reason for Islam spreading so quickly was trade routes connecting to different areas.

In the year of 610 CE, it was the starting point in which a prophet named Muhammad ibn Abdallah created a new generation with a new way of teaching called Islam, that would soon take over the parts of Africa, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. During his time on earth, the start of Islam did not flourished as much after his death. But why did it not grow or expand when Muhammad was still on earth? The new teaching of Islam is soon expanded and the new world will have a new spiritual leader named Imam (Document E). Following the death of Muhammad the first caliph is chosen. With a new “leader” comes with new rules, polices, and a way of life. Reasons why Islam had spread so quickly is because of the qualities it possesses which is its fairness, the trade routes, and its ordinance of government.

Muhammad was born in the year 570 A.D. in the city of Mecca, located now in what is known as Saudi Arabia. His father, Abdullah died before he was born and his mother, Amina passed away when Muhammad was around five or six years old. He was then brought up by his grandfather, ‘Abdul-Muttalib, who treated him with the utmost love. Two years passed before his grandfather also passed away and Muhammad was left in the care of his uncle, Abu Talib and his wife, Fatima. They treated him just as well if not better than their own children. The love they had for the young boy was matched by no one.

Islam is a major world religion. Its origin can be traced back to 610 CE in Arabia. The basis of this religion is the revelations to the prophet Mohammad. Dissatisfied with his life, he traveled to deserts, hills, and the wilderness surrounding Mecca, where he lived, to meditate and reflect. He became a new man through his revelations, which many of his followers believe Allah transmitted to him through his angel Gabriel. Islam was originally an Arab religion, but many different beliefs and practices were added to it, making it extremely popular and aiding in its rapid spread. This new religion spread to many different areas surrounding Arabia, both under Mohammad and after his death. The Muslim Empire grew to encompass Spain and

The rise and expansion of Islam has had a significant impact on the role and rights of women throughout history. Since its origin in the seventh century until modern times, the Muslim faith has somewhat broadened, but has mostly restricted women’s rights in numerous Islamic communities. The history of Muslim women is complex, as it involves many advances and declines in numerous locations, such as Egypt, Afghanistan, and Iran, concerning several subjects, including both civil and social rights. Thus, in general, the rights of Islamic women did not improve significantly over time, instead, conditions remained the same or became worse for women as Islam evolved and spread as a world religion.